Wreck kills mom, 2 children

Kelly Champlin

Wednesday

Sep 14, 2011 at 11:02 AM

Pablo Orozco, an employee of D & R Auto Brokers in Ridgeland, lost his wife and two sons in an automobile accident last Friday night.Wendy Garcia, 29, and their son, Frankie, 6, a student at Thomas Heyward, were killed on S.C. 462. Garcia, a longtime employee of DHEC-Region 8 Environmental Health Offices for Jasper County, was a Ridgeland resident."Nobody ever talked bad about her," D & R Auto Brokers' Paul Pender said. "A smile on her face everywhere she went." Orozco, 36, and their youngest child, Jacob, who turned 2 on July 9, were severely injured in the accident.Jacob, who was originally listed in critical condition, was removed from life support Monday and did not survive.The couple's other son, Pablo Jr., 12, a Thomas Heyward student, was not involved in the accident. The driver of the second car, Franklin Bostic, son of retired Jasper County firefighter Frankie Bostic, was ejected from his vehicle at the time of the accident, and was severely injured. Bostic was also airlifted to Memorial University Medical Center in Savannah.According to the state's highway patrol, Orozco and his family were travelling westbound on Highway 462 in a 1967 Chevrolet. Franklin Bostic was travelling east in a 2010 Ford four door. They met in a head-on collision, instantly killing Orozco's wife and son. Pablo and his infant son were taken to the hospital - Pablo by ground ambulance, the toddler by airlift. The toddler was considered "brain-dead" at the scene of the accident by Emergency Services personnel. According to Pender, Orozco was expected to be released from the hospital on Tuesday.Bostic was also airlifted to Memorial University, but no reports were available regarding his condition as of Monday evening.Orozco has worked at D & R Auto Brokers for seven years. Pender said the office has received "at least 100 phone calls from everybody" wanting to know what they can do to help.Pender said he and Orozco work 60 hours a week together and their families are often together outside of work."These kids have been part of my life," Pender said. "He's my employee, but we are also best friends. This is about as close as losing my own."No one, in either vehicle, wore a seat belt or child safety seat, according to the SCHP. No charges have been filed. The accident is under investigation.A fund has been set up for Pablo Orozco through South Carolina Bank & Trust. Donations may be made at any SCBT branch office or mailed to P.O. Box 880, Ridgeland, S.C. 29936.

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